Required Textbook: Natural Hazards and Disasters 3rd Edition by Donald Hyndman and David Hyndman
Available in Tulane Bookstore and from CourseSmart

Course Grading:
Your grade in this course will be determined on the following percentage distribution:

Midterm Exam

25%

Final Exam

30%

Homework

25%

Disaster Summary

15%

Field Trip

5%

Web Site:
Further course materials, including a copy of this syllabus, all homework assignments,
lecture notes, disaster summary information, announcements from the instructor, and
useful internet links can be found on the Internet at: http://www.tulane.edu/~sanelson/Natural_Disasters/
Be sure to check this web page regularly throughout the course for
important announcements and updates.

Homework and Exams:
The midterm and final exams will be mostly objective in nature with questions coming from
the reading material, lectures, and homework assignments. No make-up exams will be
given. The Final Exam will be cumulative. Homework assignments consist of
exercises designed to help the student gain practical experience in examining information
about the occurrence and effects of natural disasters. All homework answers must
be typewritten. Due dates are listed in the schedule below.
All homework is due by the end of the class period on the due date.
Due dates and times are firm. Late assignments will be subject to a
50% penalty and will not be graded in detail.

Field TripBecause part of New Orleans is still a disaster zone, we have an excellent
opportunity to observe the effects of a natural disaster first-hand.
In order to help understand the Katrina disaster 5% of your grade will be
based on participation on a 4.5 hour field trip to the disaster area. To receive the 5%, all you need to do is
participate in the field trip. To sign up for a field trip please go
to the the web page at http://www.tulane.edu/~sanelson/Natural_Disasters/fieldtrip.htm. Be sure to
follow all links on that page.

Disaster Summary:
Students will be required to find information on major natural disasters that occur during the time period of the course. Information
for this summary will be found in newspapers, magazines, and on the internet.
On the last day of class, each student will turn in a short summary of
the 10 worst disasters that occurred during the course. This summary should
include information on the type,
details, effects, death/injury toll, and economic impact of each of these 10
disasters. Further information on the disaster summary can be found at http://www.tulane.edu/~sanelson/Natural_Disasters/disastersummaryF2012.htm.

Honor Code:All students are expected to follow the Tulane Honor Code. If you are
unfamiliar with the Honor Code or have any questions about it, get a copy of the Honor
Code from your Dean's office or view it at: http://tulane.edu/college/code.cfm. In short, the Honor Code states that all work turned
in for credit must be your own work in your own words, unless clear and explicit
acknowledgement of the sources of the work is given. This does not mean that
collaboration on assignments is discouraged. You may collaborate, just make sure
that the work you turn in is in your own words, and not just a copy of the work of your
collaborators.

Course Goals and Objectives

The student will gain an understanding of the geologic and atmospheric processes responsible for natural hazards, including earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, flooding, tornadoes, hurricanes, drought, and asteroid impacts.

The student will gain an understanding of the areas susceptible to natural hazards and the frequency which these hazards become natural disasters.

The student will gain an understanding of practical ways to avoid the effects of natural disasters and mitigate the effects in areas where they are likely to occur.